Automobile engine distributor unit regulator



W. J. SCHAEFER AUTOMOBILE ENGINE DISTRIBUTOR UNIT REGULATOR Jan. 4, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Dec. 7, 1953 INVENTOR: WILLIAM J. SCHAEFER United States Patent AUTOMOBILE ENGINE DISTRIBUTOR UNIT REGULATOR William J. Schaefer, Chicago, Ill. Application December 7, 1953, Serial No. 396,617

13 Claims. (Cl. 123-117) This invention pertains to an automobile engine and, more particularly, it pertains to a device for regulating the operation of an automobile spark distributor.

At the outset it should be noted that n present day automobiles it is desired that the spark tuning correspond to the fuel combustion in the cylinder. Thus, when the engine is idling or running under light load, it IS desired that the spark be advanced since the cylinder pressure is low, due to only a partial fuel charge betng introduced providing a low pressure which is 'slow burning. However, when the engine is under heavy load, it 18 desired municates with the venturi through an opening 19 in the that the spark be retarded since the cylinder pressure is high,- due to a full charge being introduced providing a high pressure which is fast burning. were plotted on graph paper, the spark advance curve would be related to the cylinder compression curve under the preferred conditions.

On present day automobiles, the means for controlling the spark setting or the distributor lS usually with a vacuum connected to a diaphragm. The diaphragm and distributor are connecetd through a hnkage so that diaphragm movement regulates the distributor. The vacuum is generally obtained from the carburetor. This vacuum is then influenced by the cylinder pressure which is related to the operation of the carburetor.

With the present day system, when the motor is accelerated rapidly the cylinder pressure is raised causing the carburetor vacuum to be lost and thereby interrupting the operation of the vacuum distributor system. This interrupted period is referred to as a flat spot" since the cylinder pressure curve'increases as the spark curve remains constant as no vacuum is available to regulate the distributor.

In view of the foregoing comments, it is an ob ect of this invention to prevent complete collapse of the vacuum at the distributor unit when the engine is accelerated.

In addition to the foregoing, it is an object of this invention to provide a means of regulating the spark timing in an automobile. The regulation accomplished by this invention results in fuel economy, better engine efliciency, and better automobile acceleration.

It is a further object of this invention to regulate the spark timing in an automobile to eliminate the flat spot therein when the motor is accelerated.

Other objects and advantages will become more apparent upon reading the following description in light of the accompanying drawings, in which,

Fig. 1 is a view of the parts of an automobile engine wherein this invention is disposed.

Fig. 2 is a side view of a preferred embodiment of this invention.

Fig. 3 is a section view taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a section view taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 3. Fig. 5 is a section view taken on the line 5-5 of Fig. 3. Similar reference numerals refer to similar parts throughout the several views.

In Fig. 1 there is seen the essential parts of an automobile consisting of a carburetor 10 which is shown to be mountedwith an intake manifold 11 in a conventional manner. The carburetor 10 contains a housing 12 which is opened for the passage of a fuel mixture. Mounted within housing 12 is a choke plate 13 and a throttle plate 14. These plates are rotatably mounted at opposite ends of the carburetor 10. Intermediate the plates 13 and 14 is the usual main nozzle 16. Attached to the carburetor in a. venturi section 17 is a vacuum line 18 which com- If this condition carburetor. A plug 21 maintains line 18 in fluid tight relation to the carburetor.

Line 18 extends from the carburetor 10 to astructure 24 which comprises a preferred embodiment of this invention. This structure will be explained in detail in connection with the Figs. 2, 3, 4 and 5. Structure 24 is attached by means of a bolt 25 onto a diaphragm housing 26 which contains a diaphragm 27 having a link or pull rod 28 attached thereto. Mounted with diaphragm housing 26 is a distributor 29 containing a breaker plate 31 which has the pull rod 28 attached thereto at 32. The distributor shown is of a conventional type with the usual diaphragm primary spring 33 and the secondary spring 34 mounted to be operable on breaker plate 31 to position the latter against the influence of pull rod 28. The usual cam 36 and breaker arm 37 with rubbing block 38 are also shown within the distributor 29.

A second vacuum line 41 extends from the structure 24 to a booster pump 42. The construction of pump 42 is of the well known type and consists of an inlet opening 43 and an exhaust opening 44. A rocker arm 46 is mounted within the pump housing 47 to move a diaphragm 48 downwardly expelling air from a chamber 49 and out an exhaust valve 51 and through the opening 44. A spring 52 then forces diaphragm 48 upwardly creating a suction in the chamber 49 to open an intake valve (not shown) and drawing air through inlet opening 43. Thus, a vacuum 18 created in line 41 by the booster pump operating in a well known manner.

Attached to exhaust opening 44 is a line 56 which, in any desired manner, t attached to the intake manifold 11 to fluid tightly communicate therewith.

Since most of the parts shown in Fig. 1 are conventional, the structure should be understood that two vacuum lines 18 and 41 lead into structure 24. Further, line 41 operates from line 56 which carries the vacuum of the intake manifold 11. However, when the vacuum of either the carburetor or the intake manifold drops olf, the booster pump 42 operates to provide the desired vacuum. Therefore, with this system, a vacuum is always present in either line 18 or 41 for a purpose hereinafter explained.

Fig. 2 shows an enlarged view of structure 24 of Fig. 1 wherein a preferred embodiment of this invention is incorporated. The structure consists of a block shaped body 61 having the vacuum lines 18 and 41 fluid tightly connected thereto respectively by means of special bolts 62 and 63. It should then be understood that these vacuum lines communicate with the interior of body 61. Also, as previously mentioned, the bolt 25 passes through body 61 to permit mounting the structure 24 onto the diaphragm housing 26. For this purpose, bolt 25 is threaded at 64.

The precise construction of member 24 can best be seen in Fig. 3 which shows the body 61 having a bore or cylinder 66 extending therethrough. One end of the bore 66 is closed by a plug 67 being threaded into it while the opposite end receives an adjusting screw 68. Plug 67 is preferably provided with an axial hole for a reason hereinafter explained. It should be'noted that screw 68 18 received in a threaded end of bore 66 and can be adjustably screwed therewithin. Positioned within bore 66 and intermediate plug 67 and screw 68 is a piston 69 which is fluid tightly received within the bore. Opposite ends of piston 69 are engaged by compression springs 71 and 72. Spring 71 is preferably located partially within an axial hole 73 in the end of piston 69 with the opposite end of spring 71 abutting the inside end of plug 67. Spring 72 is preferably guided by surrounding an axially extending diametrically reduced end portion 74 of the piston 69, it abuts one end of the piston 69, and the spring then extends to abut the inside end of the adjusting screw 68. From the foregoing, it should be understood that thereof should be apparent. It

A second bore 78 is preferably provided within body 61 to be parallel to bore 66 but extending only partially into the body 61. Axially aligned with bore 78 and communicating ther with, is a passage 79 having a reduced diametrical p rtion adjacent bore 78, and having an enlarged end portion 81 extending through the end of the body 61 opposite from the location of the bore 78. End 81 is threaded to fluid tightly l'CC8lV6 a plug 82 which extends a short distance thereinto. Bore 78 is preferably provided with an inner end 83 which serves as a valve seat for a ball 84 located within bore 78. Also, a compression spring 86 is located within bore 78 to abut the ball 84 while a plug 85 is threaded into bore 78 to maintain spring 86 therewithin.

To complete the fluid passageways within body 61 there is provided a bore 87 extending parallel to bore 66 and extending only partially into the body. Another bore 88 is located transverse to the bores 66 and 87 to interconnect the two at a point adjacent the end 74 of the piston 69. At the inner end of bore 87 there is preferably provided a second transversely extending bore 89 which interconnects the bore 87 with the passage 79. The outer ends of the bores 87, 88 and 89 are each fluid tightly sealed with a cylindrical plug 91 attached to the body 61. At this point it should be noted that the piston 69 is circumferentially grooved at 92 in a plane coincident the axis of the bore 89 and to a width of preferably the diameter of the bore 89.

Referring again to the bolt 25, it will be noted that it is provided with an axial hole 93 which extends a distance therewithin along threaded end 64 to communicate with a transversely extending hole 94 located in the bolt 25. Hole 94 is located within passage 81 while bolt 25 is offset with respect to the passage 81 so that the hole 94 will always communicate with the passage regardless of the amount that the bolt 25 is rotated relative to the body 61.

Fig. 4 shows the manner in which vacuum line 41 communicates with body 61. Here line 41 is shown to enter cylinder 66 through a passage 96 at a point adjacent the spring 72. Also, Fig. shows the preferred manner in which vacuum line 18 communicates with bore 78 by entering it through a passage 97-at a point adjacent the spring 86.

The operation of the foregoing described system results in the creation of a vacuum in the venturi section 17 of the carburetor 10. This creates a vacuum in the line 18, and, in turn, in the bore 78 of the structure 24. Also, a vacuum, which at certain times exists in the intake manifold 11, is transmitted through the line 56, the booster pump 42, and the line 41 to the bore 66 in the structure 24.

When the engine is idling or operating at a constant speed, a vacuum is transmitted from the carburetor to the structure 24 and through the line 18 and into the r:

bore 78. When this vacuum is of a certain magnitude, the ball 84 is retracted from its seat 83 to operate as a check valve and thereby allow the fluid pressure in the passage 79 to be lowered. This in turn lowers the pressure in the bolt holes 94 and 93 to actuate the diaphragm 27 against the influence of the springs 33 and 34 in the distributor 29. With this much of the system alone, when the engine is accelerated the desired effect of the vacuum in the bore 78 is lost and consequently the desired regulation of the distributor 29 is lost.

To provide for continuous regulation of the distributor, the vacuum line 41 is connected from the booster pump 42 to the structure 24. Under idling or constant engine speed, a vacuum exists from the intake manifold 11 to the bore 66 in the structure 24. However, here also under engine acceleration the vacuum is lost in the intake manifold 11, but, through well known constructions, the booster pump 42 is then made operative in a manner as previously mentioned. The booster pump then maintains a vacuum in the line 41 and consequently in the bore 66. When a certain magnitude of vacuum exists in the cylinder or bore 66, piston 69 is moved axially toward the adjusting screw 68 to close the passage 88 and also the passa e 89 with respect to the bore 66. To facilitate this piston movement, the spring 71 is operative, as well as the passage 70, which allows atmospheric pressure to operate on the piston. Of course spring 71 is not as strong as spring 72 which at times maintains the piston 69 in the position shown in Fig. 3. Then also the screw 68 should always be adjusted to maintain a greater force in spring 72 than that in spring 71. From this disclosure, it will be obvious that the piston 69 is a regulator valve with respect to the passages 88 and 89.

It should then be understood that when the piston is in the position shown in Fig. 3, a certain vacuum will be effective through the line 41, the passage 96, the bore 66, the passages or bores 88, 87, 89, and to the passage 79 for the further effect as described in connection with the vacuum in bore 78. The passage 79 is termed the fluid inlet passage, and bores 66 and 78 are termed the fluid outlet passages.

Further, the magnitude of the effective vacuum in the cylinder 66 is regulated by the adjusting screw 68 being threaded with respect to the body 61 to obtain the desired force exerted by the spring 72 upon the piston 69. With this system, vacuum will always be present in the body 61 and it will therefore eliminate the flat spot in the present types of vacuum operated systems. To this end, structure 24 is a spark distributor unit regu lator in that it regulates or controls the distributor unit.

While a specific embodiment of this invention has been shown and described, it should be obvious that numerous variations of the principle could be made from this disclosure. Therefore, the protection of this invention should be limited only by the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. In an automobile engine, the combination comprising a carburetor, an intake manifold, a vacuum pump, a spark distributor, a spark distributor regulator unit operatively attached to said distributor, a first vacuum line fluid tightly communicating said carburetor with said regulator unit, a second vacuum line fluid tightly communicating said intake manifold with said vacuum pump, a third vacuum line fluid tightly communicating said vacuum pump with said regulator unit, said third line containing a minimum vacuum at all times.

2. The subject of claim 1 including means within said regulator unit for separately communicating said first and said third vacuum lines with said regulator unit.

3. The subject matter of claim 1 including means within said regulator unit for separately communicating said first and said third vacuum lines with said regulator unit, a valve disposed within said regulator unit in each of said vacuum lines to maintain said lines separate 4. In an automobile engine the combination comprising a carburetor, a vacuum pump, a distributor unit regulator, a first vacuum line fluid tightly communicating said carburetor with said distributor unit regulator, a second vacuum line fluid tightly communicating said vacuum pump with said distributor unit regulator, said second line containing a minimum vacuum at all times.

5. The subject matter of claim 4 including means within said regulator unit for separately communicating said first and said second vacuum lines with said distributor unit regulator.

6. The subject matter of claim 4 including means within said regulator unit for separately communicating said first and said second vacuum lines with said regulator unit, a valve disposed within said regulator unit in each of said vacuum lines to maintain said lines separated.

7. In an automobile engine the combination comprising a spark distributor unit regulator body having two separate outlet passages therein with one common inlet passage, a valve disposed in each of said outlet passages. a fuel carburetor, a vacuum line extending from said carburetor to one of said regulator body outlet passages,

a second vacuum line connected to the other of said regulator body outlet passages.

8. In an automobile engine spark distributor system the combination comprising a vacuum unit body having a fluid inlet passage therein and two fluid outlet passages in communication with said inlet passage, a spring biased valve disposed in each of said outlet passages to interrupt the flow of fluid therethrough, two separate vacuum lines separately connected to said outlet passages.

9. An automobile engine vacuum system comprising in combination a vacuum unit body having two separated fluid outlet passages in communication with a single fluid inlet passage, a spring biased valve disposed within each of said outlet passages, said body having a hole extending therethrough in communication with said inlet passage, a bolt positioned within said body hole to extend beyond fluid outlet openings one of which said body at the threaded end of said bolt and having a fluid passage in the threaded end thereof in communication with said body inlet passage, an automobile vacuum diaphragm housing which receives said bolt to attach said unit to said housing.

10. In an automobile engine spark distributor system the combination comprising a vacuum unit body having a fluid inlet passage and two fluid outlet passages in communication with said inlet passage, a check valve positioned in one of said outlet passages, a regulator valve positioned in the other of said outlet passages, two separate vacuum lines separately connected to said outlet passages.

11. An automobile engine vacuum unit comprising in combination a body having a fluid inlet opening and two fluid outlet openings with at least one of said outlet openings forming a cylinder and with said inlet opening in communication with the other of said outlet openings, said body having a fluid passage extending between said cylinder and said inlet opening, a piston disposed within said cylinder to open and close said fluid passage by axial movement of said piston and thereby interrupt the communication between said inlet opening and said passage, a check valve positioned in the other of said outlet openings, means on said unit for attaching to an automobile spark distributor system.

' 12. An automobile engine vacuum unit comprising in combination a body having a fluid inlet opening and two isin communication with said inlet opening and the other of which is formed as a cylinder, a fluid passage interconnecting said inlet opening and said cylinder, a piston disposed within said cylinder and axially movable therewithin to open and close said passage, a compression spring located to be operable upon said piston to maintain the latter in a position wherein said passage is opened, a check valve positioned in said outlet opening which is in communication with said inlet opening to interrupt fluid flow therebetween, a vacuum line in communication with each of said outlet openings, connecting means on said unit body for. attaching said unit in an automobile engine vacuum system.

13. A vacuum unit comprising in combination a body having a fluid inlet opening and two fluid outlet openings one of which is in communication with said inlet opening and the other of which is formed as a cylinder, a fluid passage interconnecting said inlet opening and said cylinder, a piston disposed within said cylinder and axially movable therewithin to open and close said passage, a compression spring located to be operable upon said piston to maintain the latter in a position wherein said passage is opened, acheck valve positioned in said outlet opening which is in communication with said inlet opening to interrupt fluid flow therebetween, a fuel carburetor, a vacuum line extended from said carburetor to said outlet opening which is in communication with said inlet opening, a second vacuum line continuously having at least a minimum vacuum therein being connected to said cylinder, means on said body for attaching said unit to an automobile engine sparkignition vacuum system.

References Cited in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,183,747 Jennings Dec. 19, 1939 2,229,822 Seymour Jan. 28, 1941 2,243,645 Nardone May 27, 1941 

